1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicular headlamp and a car headlamp. Particularly, the present invention relates to a headlamp used for a vehicle and a headlamp used for a car.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a lighting device for a vehicle that employs a semiconductor light emitting element such as an LED (Light Emitting Diode) has been known (for instance, see JP-A-2002-231013 (pages 2 to 6, FIGS. 1-13)). Further, it has been studied to use the semiconductor light emitting element such as the LED for a vehicular headlamp, for instance, in view of design. The vehicular headlamp needs to form a prescribed light distribution pattern from the viewpoint of safety. A light distribution pattern includes an area called a hot zone to be irradiated with light more brightly than other areas in the light distribution pattern.
In order to brightly irradiate the hot zone with light, a light source of high brightness is preferably used to condense the light having high luminous intensity to the hot zone and irradiate the hot zone with the light. To generate the light of the high brightness, the light source may allow the light having a large light flux to be generated. However, when a semiconductor light emitting element such as an LED generates the light having the large light flux, a light emitting efficiency may be sometimes deteriorated. Accordingly, the consumed power of a vehicular headlamp is undesirably increased.